In the area of digital technology one of the most popular mediums for saving and accessing data is the compact disc. The compact disc, hereinafter referred to in this specification as CD, is arguably the most economic storage medium in use today. In a related area, digital cameras have become greatly popular, and are achieving higher and higher image resolution. However users of digital cameras must typically transfer images to a PC-based system in order to arrange, edit, and store them. It becomes logical then to store photos and video data on CDs in order to free up precious storage facilities like a computer hard drive.
Recent technological advances have enabled the general public to record or “burn” their own CDs using PC-based CD burners. In many new computers, CD read-write (RW) drives are provided in addition to the traditional CD read-only-memory (ROM). More recently, a host of manufacturers have developed and provided external CD RW drives that connect to a PC through USB or other appropriate communication ports.
CD-RW drives are typically used for creating music, picture, or data CDs from data that resides on a semi-permanent or permanent storage medium such as a computer hard-drive or on another CD. Data that is captured using a digital capture medium like a digital camera or cam-recorder can be transferred to a storage facility that is accessible to a CD-RW unit through a process of uploading the data to a temporary storage area on the computer hard-drive and then accessing the data from the temporary storage area by running the CD-RW drive and user-operated software that is installed on a computer hosting the CD-RW drive.
Hard-wired and USB-peripheral CD-RW drives depend on the computer operating system, and software installed on the system, in order to function properly. There are several problems with this approach that lend to certain inconveniences and ultimate frustration for many users. One drawback with USB-connected peripheral CD-RW drives is that it is not convenient to upload data into a software “burn CD” window on the computer when the data must be accessed from a separate storage medium over a separate USB cable. For USB-connected drives it is recommended that the data for burn be uploaded from the capture device to the computer before accessing the data for a burn operation.
Another problem with computer-dependant units is that often during a burn operation, the operation is aborted due to typical computer hardware interruptions. A common interruption is associated with the input/output I/O support hardware. The port experiences a kind of “server timeout”. Such software or hardware interruptions cause an “abort” forcing the user to re-start the operation. If the user was burning a CD-R (read only) disc when an abort operation occurs then the disc is rendered useless.
Still another issue is the complexity of a typical burn process in terms of required user steps that must be performed before a CD can be burned, including those for opening the application, browsing for the data, uploading the data to temporary storage, and so on.
One manufacturer has provided a computerized video-editing station that has a CD-RW drive included therein. An article about the system entitled, GET the PICTURE: digital cameras and CD-R need each other, was authored by Hugh Bennett, and is published in an issue of E-MEDIA PROFESSIONAL: April, 2000 and is referenced herein as prior art.
The device introduced in the paragraph above was advertised as a portable set-top unit that is designed to provide image editing and archiving capability without the use of a desktop PC. The unit is self-contained, but requires a TV coupling for operation. The system depends on a complex operating system (Java-based) that supports an IDE/ATAPI 4×20 speed CD recorder. The CD recorder can be used to burn images and video directly from Flash or portable micro-hard-drives that can be inserted into the unit through available docking bays.
Images or digital video taken with a camera that uses the supported flash cards or micro drives can be accessed once the card or drive carrying the data is inserted into an appropriate bay and the image data can be burned directly onto a CD input into the CD-drive bay of the unit. While this system enables data on a flash card to be burned onto a CD, the system is commercially expensive and the CD RW drive is dependant on the computer operating system. Additionally, the device is not portable because it depends on a video graphic display (television monitor) to enable a user to interact with the system. Moreover, a user cannot copy a CD with the system.
What is clearly needed is a portable and dedicated CD-RW drive that can be operated without a video monitor or a computer, to create CDs from a compact flash or other portable memory card directly, and preferably using a one-touch technology. Such a dedicated unit would not depend on a complicated operating system and could be provided in a more economical package.